4.6.1942 Battle of Midway

The Battle of Midway was a decisive engagement in the Pacific during World War II. It ended with an Allied victory. Within five minutes, three Japanese aircraft carriers were turned into burning wrecks.

In the spring of 1942, Japanese General Yamamoto, believing that his naval planes and pilots were better than American machines and men, he sought to push back Japan's defensive perimeter in the Pacific and draw the American Pacific Fleet into battle.

Yamamoto planned combined attacks on the Aleutian Islands in the North Pacific and the American base at Midway Island, where he sent four aircraft carriers and sixteen other warships. American intelligence, which had achieved great success by breaking the codes, communicated the details of the Japanese plan to the Commander of the Pacific Fleet, Admiral Chester Nimitz.

Nimitz decided to ignore the attack on the Aleutians and focus on Midway. He had three carriers at his disposal - Enterprise, Hornet, and Yorktown - and sent two battle groups to Midway. The morning of 4 June began with a heavy raid by Japanese naval aircraft on the airfield at Midway. The Japanese were just preparing a second raid when American naval planes attacked.

"I saw a glint in the sun and it looked just like a beautiful silver waterfall, those dive bombers coming down. I've never seen such a beautiful dive-bombing," American pilot Jimmy Tchatch recalled of the Battle of Midway.

Japanese carriers found the Hornet torpedo bombers first, but all fifteen were shot down by Zero fighters. A wave of torpedo bombers from Yorktown were similarly affected, although American Wildcat fighters did what they could to keep the Zeros busy. By concentrating on the low-flying torpedo bombers, however, the Japanese fighters missedthe arrival of Douglas Dauntless dive bombers from Yorktown and Enterprise, which attacked the Japanese carriers.

Within five minutes, the three Japanese carriers were burning wrecks. A fourth carrier made a counterattack on the Yorktown but was destroyed by the dive-bombers of the Enterprise. It was a convincing American victory.

"Midway proved to be not only the decisive battle of 1942, but also the decisive battle of the entire Pacific War, which gave the U.S. Navy a chance in the other carrier battles of that year," Mark Stille notes in U.S. Aircraft Carriers vs. Japanese Aircraft Carriers.

Sources:
Mark Stille: U.S. Aircraft Carriers vs Japan's Aircraft Carriers
R.G. Grant: Battles - 5,000 Years of Warfare
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